Star attraction Alessandro Del Piero
Australian football (soccer) has kicked many goals in a season disrupted by relentless media attention on crowd behaviour.
Buoyed by the success of expansion club Western Sydney Wanderers, along with marquee players Alessandro Del Piero, Emile Heskey and Shinji Ono, the A-league has enjoyed improved playing standards and record crowd and TV figures.
Despite the positive numbers, isolated incidents have formed the basis of many reports ignoring the positive aspects of the sport.
Negative Attention
The actions of a minority, including chair damage and a fan punch, prompted columnists uninterested in football to voice their disapproval for the sport and form a generalised opinion of all football fans.
An extreme example saw a Herald Sun columnist telling supporters to “rack off” and “take your round football with you.”
Football in Numbers
Football Federation Australia released figures showing negative press did not deter football fans from participating in record numbers.
- Average TV audiences at a record 82,886, up 26% on last season
- Average attendances at 12,925, up 23% on last season
- Club Memberships at a record 70,000, up 12% on last season
- A new TV deal worth $160 million over the next four years
Security Perspective
ACG Security General Manager of Events, Sam Chmayse, said while there was a new culture of active support in a growing sport, problems existed across all codes.
“We are holding plenty of meetings and forums with stakeholders addressing issues and proposing several plans,” he said.
“Lots of these things happen at all sports, it’s an alcohol problem.”
Other Sports
Another Herald Sun columnist said, “You simply don’t see other fans behaving in such a manner.”
Evidence proves otherwise.
The 2010 cricket Boxing Day test saw 54 people evicted, 22 in 2012 including high profile Melbourne Demons AFL players.
Many incidents have happened at AFL games, notably player Nathan Jones’ father being bashed.
Other articles include:
Fan Perspective
Melbourne Victory supporter spokesperson and 2011/12 football fan of the year, Adam Tennenini, said football crowds were unique because of the organised efforts that go into supporting clubs, but did not cause more disruption than other codes.
“The singing and large scale choreographed displays are all things that have never been seen in Australian sport,” he said.
“This exudes more passion in the stands which can sometimes be misinterpreted as anti-social behaviour… as has been well documented, evictions at A-League stadiums are comparative to other sports.”
Regardless of the negative press, fans and officials can agree it has been a successful campaign and can now turn their attention to the finals series and the race for the championship.
Image: Marco Estrella via Creative Commons license
